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REFERENCE: NHL 94 ROM hacking school


Tony H

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[EDIT: Hi, this is smozoma. Tony's Tutorial is great, but it's out of date.

I have taken his post and updated it with newer tools and some expanded explanations:

Please see my updated NHL 94 ROM hacking school post.

Thanks! --smozoma]

A few people here in the NHL94 forums are interested in

finding out how I find useful ROM addresses in Genesis

games (ie. NHL 94). I've decided to write a guide that

explains how to do it. If anyone has any questions as

I go along, please feel free to ask. I'm typing this in

a hurry, so I may not explain everything too well.

Here's a list of what you'll need...

1) Gens Hacking Version (http://thegshi.org/ (download section)).

2) Gens Tracer (http://thegshi.org/ (download section)).

3) A hex editor (your choice or bpsoft.com for free trial

version).

4) NHL94 ROM (in bin format).

5) Some basic 68000 assembly language knowledge is

helpful, but not absolutely necessary.

Here's what that stuff is for...

We'll use Gens Hacking Version to find RAM addresses.

Some people use Kega Fusion to find RAM addresses. If

you'd rather use it, that's fine. We'll use Gens Tracer

for memory traces and assembly trace logs. Gens Tracer

is really the "magic" program that helps us find useful

ROM addresses. The hex editor is for finding ROM

addreses, and the NHL94 ROM is what we'll be poking

around in trying to find ROM addresses.

To try to keep this relatively simple, we'll find the

ROM address that determines how much time you get for

each period. The game normally lets you select from

5, 10 and 20 minute periods, and there is the "cheat"

that lets you have 30 second periods. I'll show you

how to find those values in the ROM so you can change

them to any value you want, and I'll show you how to

stop the clock completely so you'll have infinite time.

Not that you'd want infinite time, but mainly to show

you how it's done.

Since making Game Genie codes is kinda my "thing", I'll

also show you how to make Game Genie codes for all this

stuff.

Okay, lets get to the good stuff...

The first thing we need to do is find the RAM address

for the clock. This is very easy to do. Just start

up Gens Hacking Version, load your NHL94 ROM, and start

a game. When the clock starts to count down, click on

"Cheats / Search GG codes". Click the "reset" button

and then click "OK". Let the clock count down 1 or 2

seconds and click on "Cheats / Search GG codes". Now

make sure "less than", "Previous Value" and "1 byte"

are all checked, then click on "Search". Click "OK"

and go back to the game and let the clock count down

a few more seconds. click on "Cheats / Search GG codes"

again and click "Search". Keep repeating this until

you only have a few RAM addresses left. If you're

doing this on your own, you'll need to test each RAM

address to find out which one is the one you're looking

for. You can do that by highlighting the RAM address

and clicking "add cheat" and testing each one until

you find the one that you're looking for. For this

example, I'll tell you that the RAM address for the

clock is FFC469. It's actually FFC468, but for our

purposes (and to keep this shorter), FFC469 will work

fine.

Okay, so we know that the RAM address for the clock

is FFC469. Now we need to find out where in the ROM

this RAM address is being loaded, modified, etc.

That's where Gens Tracer come in.

When you set up Gens Tracer, it has a folder called

"tracer". In that folder is a text file called

"hook_log.txt". Open up that text file (with notepad)

and change it so it looks exactly like this...

hook_pc1 0 -1 -1

hook_pc2 1 -1 -1

hook_pc3 1 -1 -1

hook_rd1 0 -1 -1

hook_rd2 0 -1 -1

hook_rd3 0 -1 -1

hook_wr1 0 ffc469 ffc469

hook_wr2 0 -1 -1

hook_wr3 0 -1 -1

hook_ppu1 1 -1 -1

hook_ppu2 1 -1 -1

hook_ppu3 1 -1 -1

(There's other stuff down here, but just leave it as is).

As you can see, we put our RAM address for the clock

in there for a hook on write (hook_wr1). What this

does is tells Gens Tracer to make a note every time

that RAM address is changed, and what ROM address

caused it to change. This is similiar to breakpoints.

Save the changes you made to your "hook_log.txt" file.

Open up Gens Tracer, and load your NHL94 ROM. As soon

as you see the "NHL Hockey 94" title screen, press the

"," key on your keyboard. This starts the memory

tracer. Now keep pressing the "Start" button (usually

the "Enter/Return" key on your keyboard) until the

game starts. Wait until the clock counts down about

3 or 4 seconds and press the "," key again. This

stops the memory tracer. Exit Gens Tracer.

The memory trace that you just made for RAM address

FFC469 has been saved to a text file called "hook.txt".

When you open up "hook.txt", this is what you should

see...

[01:730A] W32 = 00000000 [FFC468]

[00:7830] W16 = 0258 [FFC468]

[00:7830] W16 = 0258 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0257 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0256 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0255 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0254 [FFC468]

TRACE STOPPED

There's some very useful info in this file. A quick

breakdown: The ROM addresses are on the far left side,

followed by how many bits, followed by the value, and

then the RAM address at the far right side.

The ROM addresses listed are not the exact ROM addresses

we're looking for, but they're usually pretty close.

Next I'll show you how to use the info in the "hook.txt"

file to find the ROM addresses we're looking for.

It's getting late, so I'll end for now. You guessed

it... I have one of the "job" things to go to in the

morning.

Tony.

P.S. Let me know if there's something I didn't explain

too well.

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Awesome Tony! Guys can ask many a questions about editing the game mechanics and architecture I bet ; ) Your work will definitely be put to good use by myself and others.

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Setting the clock to infinite time could be very useful, enabling games that the object is getting to a certain number of goals before the other team.

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Glad to see some interest in this post. That will help

motivate me to finish.

Okay, lets get started again.

In my last post, here was the memory trace we made:

[01:730A] W32 = 00000000 [FFC468]

[00:7830] W16 = 0258 [FFC468]

[00:7830] W16 = 0258 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0257 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0256 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0255 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0254 [FFC468]

TRACE STOPPED

Here's what each of those lines mean...

[01:730A] W32 = 00000000 [FFC468]

This one just sets the value to 00000000. nothing we need.

[00:7830] W16 = 0258 [FFC468]

This one tells us which ROM address moves the value 0258

to our RAM address for the clock. 0258 is a hex number.

0258 = 600 in decimal. There are 60 seconds in a minute,

so 600 divided by 60 = 10 minutes. 10 minutes is the

amount of time that is on the clock when the game started.

We can use the ROM address in this line to help us find

the actual ROM address we're looking for (the ROM address

to change the amount of time you start the game with).

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0257 [FFC468]

This one tells us the ROM address that is subtracting one

number from the clock value for every second that goes by.

We can use this ROM address to help us find the instruction

that is causing the clock to count down. By changing this

instruction, we can stop the clock (infinite time). This

is where a little 68000 assembly knowledge can be helpful.

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0256 [FFC468]

Same as above, except one second less.

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0255 [FFC468]

Same as above, except one second less.

And so on.

After you've done several of these memory traces, you can

quite often just open up the ROM with a hex editor and

go to the ROM address listed and figure out what you need

to know. For example, I can open up my NHL94 ROM with a

hex editor, go to ROM address $015DFC, and instantly see

what instruction I need to change to have infinite time.

But since learning how to read raw 68000 assembly is

something most people don't want to do, here is how you

can make an assembly trace log that will show you everything

that's going on in the CPU, and send it all to a text file

in a "relatively" easy to read format. When you first see

your assembly trace log, it's easy to be overwhelmed by all

the crap in there, but don't let it scare you off. After

you get used to it, it's not really that hard to understand.

An assembly trace log is getting down into the real nuts and

bolts of how a Genesis game works. If you can learn how to

"read" it, you can find all kinds of very useful ROM

addresses.

Okay, here's how to make an assembly trace log. Open up

your NHL94 ROM using Gens Tracer. Get to the first option

screen (the one where you can change Play Mode, Per Length,

etc). Press the "/" key on your keyboard. This starts the

assembly trace log. Now press your "Start" button 3 times

so that you're on the ice and ready to start playing. Wait

for the clock to count down a few seconds and then press the

"/" key again. This stops the assembly trace log. Exit

Gens Tracer. Your newly created assembly trace log has been

sent to a file called "Trace.log"

Keep in mind that the Genesis CPU is operating at about 4Mhz,

so the Trace.log files can be very big.

Remember that everytime you make a new memory trace file, or

a new assembly trace log, the old one will be overwritten.

So if you want to keep any, make sure you rename it.

Now lets open up our new Trace.log file and take a look at

it. I recommend using something like MS Word to open it

with.

We'll start off by figuring out how to make the game have

infinite time. When you have the file opened, use the "Find"

option and type in 01:5DFA. Here's how I came up with that

number... Look at the memory trace we made:

[01:730A] W32 = 00000000 [FFC468]

[00:7830] W16 = 0258 [FFC468]

[00:7830] W16 = 0258 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0257 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0256 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0255 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0254 [FFC468]

TRACE STOPPED

See where it shows the time starting to count down...

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0257 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0256 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0255 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0254 [FFC468]

0257 seconds

0256 seconds

0255 seconds

0254 seconds

The ROM address shown for each time a second is subtracted

is always the same: 01:5DFC, so we know that the instruction

we're looking for is near by that ROM address. The way that

this memory trace works, you usually need to subtract

2 from the ROM address listed. So to get the ROM address

we need to look for in our Trace.log file, we just need to

subtract 2 from 01:5DFC = 01:5DFA. That's how I came up

with the number to put in the "Find" box.

Alright, back to the Trace.log file... type in the ROM

address we're looking for (01:5DFA) into the "Find" box and

click on "Find Next". Your first match should look like

this:

01:5DFA 53 78 SUBQ.W #1,($C468) A0=FFFFBDEC A1=FFFFCA32

A2=FFFFC6CE A3=FFFFB74A A4=FFFFB892 A5=FFFFB8B4 A6=FFFFC060 A7=FFFFFF62

D0=FFFF0100 D1=00000122 D2=00000000 D3=00000183 D4=00000006 D5=0000000C

D6=0000000A D7=00000001 XNZvC

This tells us exactly what we need to know to give us

infinite time. SUBQ.W #1,($C468) means that it is

subtracting 1 from RAM address $C468. If you remember,

FFC468 is our RAM address for time. All we have to do

to get the clock to stop counting down (inf time), is

figure out how to kill that SUBQ.W instruction. We can

easily do this by changing the 5378 opcode shown above

to a branch opcode (6002) instead. This will make the

game jump right over the subtraction part. We can test

this out by making a quick Game Genie code...

Just use a Game Genie conversion program (you can get one

from my web site):

015DFA:6002 = AKRT-CA94

015DFA is the ROM address, and 6002 is the replacement

opcode.

Because it is beyond the scope of this guide, I'm not

going to go into how I came up with 6002 for the opcode

to kill the subtraction. This is where some 68000 assembly

knowledge is helpful. Here's a quick tip... using a branch

opcode (usually 6002 or 6004) is the most common way to

kill many opcodes (subtraction, addition, etc). 6002 will

"jump" 2 bytes, and 6004 will "jump" 4 bytes. You'll

usually want to jump to the next opcode. NEVER jump to

an operand (this can cause the game to freeze).

Anyways, if you try our new Game Genie code (AKRT-CA94)

with your favorite emulator, or on a real Genesis, you'll

see that you now have infinite time.

A little short cut... Gens emulator will let you enter

Game Genie codes in raw format, so instead of converting

the ROM address and opcode into a Game Genie code, Gens

lets you enter it like this: 015DFA:6002. Saves a little

time.

You can easily hack infinite time into your ROM by going

to ROM address $015DFA and changing the 5378 to 6002. Of

course you'll also need to hack the master code too (or

else you'll get a blank screen).

Well, that's it for now. Next we'll find out how to find

the ROM addresses for period lengths. I'll also explain

what some of that stuff is in the assembly trace log.

Tony.

P.S. As always, if something is confusing, let me know

and I'll try to explain it better.

EDIT: I made a mistake in one of the sentences above.

In the paragraph right below where it says:

0257 seconds

0256 seconds

0255 seconds

0254 seconds

there's a sentence that said:

The way that this assembly trace log works, you usually

need to subtract 2 from the ROM address listed.

It should say this:

The way that this memory trace works, you usually

need to subtract 2 from the ROM address listed.

I got assembly trace and memory trace mixed up.

I've already corrected it above.

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Thanks Tony, for the detailed instructions.

I've been trying to make progress on a hack of the controls where pressing A on defense would select the goalie and holding B would go for the hook. I'm going under the assumption that if I can find the location of hex instructions which control selecting the goalie and hooking, I might be able to just swap them. We'll see how that works if I can find the hex bytes which control both.

I attempted to use the hacking gens and the tracer but I'm having a hard time coming up with a way to isolate those instructions in the RAM through using the find cheat option in gens. Any suggestions as far as the search options go? I mostly tried to go back and forth between equal to and not equal to, while either pressing a button or not. But so far I haven't been able to find a trustworthy RAM address.

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Great info there Tony... I look forward to the additional posts that will follow...

Also nice to learn about the two Gens mods (hack and tracer) that I didn't know about.... can't wait to actually test it out all out soon...

*sigh* oh free time... where are yee!!!!

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Scribe99, I've never really done much work with controller inputs, except for controller activated cheats. When you do a controller cheat (ie. pressing several buttons to activate the cheat), these are the values that are usually used in the ROM:

Up = 01

Down = 02

Left = 04

Right = 08

A = 40

B = 10

C = 20

START = 80

So for example, if the controller cheat was A, A, B, B, UP, DOWN, the hex string in the ROM might look like this: 40 40 10 10 01 02.

I don't know if this info will help in your situation though. If I can find anymore info on the subject, I'll let you know.

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This is the best thing I could find so far from romhacking.net (I'm trying to come up with a way of searching for the correct byte in gens when a button is pressed, and then using your explanation with the tracer, track down its hex address):

There are two one-byte data sets:

v & 0x40: always set

v & 0x20: C

v & 0x10: B

v & 0x08: right

v & 0x04: left

v & 0x02: down

v & 0x01: up

and:

v & 0x40: always clear

v & 0x20: START

v & 0x10: A

v & 0x08: right

v & 0x04: left

v & 0x02: down

v & 0x01: up

By reading a word from 0xA10002 (for first controller) or 0xA10004 (for second), the word will have one of the above bitmasks written to both bytes. If you write a byte to 0xA10003(for 1st) or 0xA10005(for 2nd) with the 0x40 bit set, you'll get the first set, otherwise you'll get the second.

Example:

Player 1 is pressing left and the A and B buttons simultaneously. Player 2 is pressing B, C, and START. As the game, in order to probe controller 1:

- I send byte 0x00 to 0xA10003 (or word 0x0000 to 0xA10002)

- I read a word from 0xA10002, which gives me 0x1414. From the lower table, I see A and left are being pressed.

- I send byte 0x40 to 0xA10003.

- I read another word from 0xA10002. This time I get 0x5454, which from the upper table means B and left are being pressed.

Similarly, to probe controller 2:

- I send byte 0x00 to 0xA10005.

- I read from 0xA10004, and get 0x2020. So START is being pressed

- I send byte 0x40 to 0xA10005.

- I read from 0xA10004 again, get 0x7070, so B and C are being pressed.

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Tony,

I just wanted to say the information provided here is extremely appreciated. Thanks for all your time and efforts!

-Evan

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Scribe99... that's interesting, let me know what you find.

Thanks for all the support everyone. I don't think I would have finished this guide if no one seemed interested.

All right, now I'll show you how to find the ROM addresses

for period lengths so you can adjust how much time you

start each period with to any value you want.

Use the same memory trace and assembly trace log as before.

Our memory trace looked like this:

[01:730A] W32 = 00000000 [FFC468]

[00:7830] W16 = 0258 [FFC468]

[00:7830] W16 = 0258 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0257 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0256 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0255 [FFC468]

[01:5DFC] W16 = 0254 [FFC468]

TRACE STOPPED

The ROM address we're interested in here is 00:7830 because

that's the ROM addresses that loaded the initial value of

0258. And remember that 0258 was a hex number which equals

600 in decimal, which equals 10 minutes (which is how much

time we started the period with).

Just like before, we need to subtract 2 from the ROM address

listed in the memory trace to get the actual ROM address that

we'll be searching for in the trace.log file. So 00:7830 - 2

= 00:782E. If you're not sure how to do hex math, just use

your windows calculator. So 00:782E is the ROM address we'll

search for in our trace.log file.

Open up your trace.log file (with MS Word or ?), open up the

"Find" window and type in our ROM address: 00:782E. Click

"Find Next" and you'll notice that your first match isn't on

the far left side of the page. For this example, we're only

interested in matches on the far left side of the page. So

click "Find Next" again. Your second match should be on the

far left side of the page. This is what we're looking for.

Here's what it should look like:

00:782E 31 C0 MOVE.w D0,($C468) A0=0000785E A1=FFFFBFAA

A2=FFFFCA32 A3=FFFFB84A A4=FFFFB88A A5=FFFFD404 A6=00000000 A7=FFFFFFFA

D0=C29D0258 D1=0000FFFF D2=FFFF0000 D3=00000080 D4=0000022E D5=0000000C

D6=00005311 D7=0000000A xNzvC

Here's what the first line means...

00:782E 31 C0 MOVE.w D0,($C468)

00:782E is the ROM address of the instruction (opcode).

31 C0 is the opcode.

MOVE.w D0,($C468) means it is moving the value in register

D0 to RAM address $C468. RAM address $C468 (FFC468) is the

amount of time on the clock.

You may be asking... what the hell is register D0? Pay close

attention here, because this is an important part of being

able to read an assembly trace. In my "snippet" above from

our trace.log file, there are a total of 16 registers shown.

Registers are kinda like storage areas. There are 2 types

of registers... The "A" registers are for Addresses, and the

"D" registers are for Data. There are 8 "A" registers (A0

through A7) and 8 "D" registers (D0 through D7). All 16

registers are always listed for every opcode in our trace.log

files. Get to know them, love them,... be one with the

registers. Okay, I'm getting carried away, but registers

are pretty important. We'll need to read the registers to

find the ROM addresses for the values for the period lengths.

From our trace.log snippet above, here's part of the first

line:

MOVE.w D0,($C468)

We know that it "MOVEs" the value in register D0 to RAM

address $C468. If you look at register D0 (above), this is

what you'll see: D0=C29D0258. See the "0258" in there?

That's where our number of seconds for each period is

coming from. All we have to do is figure out where that

value is coming from, and we'll find our ROM addresses.

Let me explain one more thing before we move on... you may

have noticed that the value in register D0 was C29D0258.

Why does the game only use 0258 instead of the entire value

of C29D0258? The answer is because the "MOVE" instruction

has a "w" after it (MOVE.w), and the w means Word. A "word"

is 2 bytes. Here is the list of the letters used and what

they mean...

B = Byte (1 byte)

W = Word (2 bytes)

L = Long word (4 bytes)

Moving on... we know that register D0 cantains the value

that we're interested in (0258). Here's how we figure out

where that value comes from. This gets a bit complicated,

so go drink a big cup of coffee so you'll be extra alert.

To figure out where the value in register D0 is coming from,

we need to read the assembly trace log backwards. Here is

the part of the trace.log that we'll need to find what we're

looking for...

00:7858 30 30 MOVE.w $00(A0,D0),D0 A0=0000785E A1=FFFFBFAA

A2=FFFFCA32 A3=FFFFB84A A4=FFFFB88A A5=FFFFD404 A6=00000000 A7=FFFFFFF6

D0=C29D0002 D1=0000FFFF D2=FFFF0000 D3=00000080 D4=0000022E D5=0000000C

D6=00005311 D7=0000000A xnzvc

00:785C 4E 75 RTS A0=0000785E A1=FFFFBFAA

A2=FFFFCA32 A3=FFFFB84A A4=FFFFB88A A5=FFFFD404 A6=00000000 A7=FFFFFFF6

D0=C29D0258 D1=0000FFFF D2=FFFF0000 D3=00000080 D4=0000022E D5=0000000C

D6=00005311 D7=0000000A xnzvc

00:7818 0C 78 CMPI.W #$0003,($C466) A0=0000785E A1=FFFFBFAA

A2=FFFFCA32 A3=FFFFB84A A4=FFFFB88A A5=FFFFD404 A6=00000000 A7=FFFFFFFA

D0=C29D0258 D1=0000FFFF D2=FFFF0000 D3=00000080 D4=0000022E D5=0000000C

D6=00005311 D7=0000000A xnzvc

00:781E 6D 00 BLT #$000E [00:782E] A0=0000785E A1=FFFFBFAA

A2=FFFFCA32 A3=FFFFB84A A4=FFFFB88A A5=FFFFD404 A6=00000000 A7=FFFFFFFA

D0=C29D0258 D1=0000FFFF D2=FFFF0000 D3=00000080 D4=0000022E D5=0000000C

D6=00005311 D7=0000000A xNzvC

00:782E 31 C0 MOVE.w D0,($C468) A0=0000785E A1=FFFFBFAA

A2=FFFFCA32 A3=FFFFB84A A4=FFFFB88A A5=FFFFD404 A6=00000000 A7=FFFFFFFA

D0=C29D0258 D1=0000FFFF D2=FFFF0000 D3=00000080 D4=0000022E D5=0000000C

D6=00005311 D7=0000000A xNzvC

For right now, the only thing we're interested in is

register D0. You'll notice that if you start at the

bottom (00:782E), the value in D0 is C29D0258. Reading

backwards (moving upwards one section), the value in D0

at ROM address 00:781E is still C29D0258. No change in

D0 so move upwards to the next section. D0 is still the

same, so move upwards again. When we finally get to the

very top section (00:7858), you'll see that the value in

register D0 has changed. Here's what that section looks

like:

00:7858 30 30 MOVE.w $00(A0,D0),D0 A0=0000785E A1=FFFFBFAA

A2=FFFFCA32 A3=FFFFB84A A4=FFFFB88A A5=FFFFD404 A6=00000000 A7=FFFFFFF6

D0=C29D0002 D1=0000FFFF D2=FFFF0000 D3=00000080 D4=0000022E D5=0000000C

D6=00005311 D7=0000000A xnzvc

The value in D0 has changed to C29D0002. The 0258 part

is gone. So we know that this is the line that loaded

the number of seconds (0258) into register D0. This

line of code will tell us what we need to know. Drum

roll please...

MOVE.w $00(A0,D0),D0

I know it may seem a little cryptic, but here's what

it means: see where it says (A0,D0)... that means you

take the 2 byte value in D0 (0002) and add it to the

ROM address in register A0 (remember, the A registers

are for Addresses). A0=0000785E so 0000785E + 0002 =

00007860. If you go to ROM address 00007860 with your

hex editor, this is the value you'll see: 0258. BINGO!!

We found it! This is the value that the game uses for

10 minute periods. You can change that value to any

number you want with a Game Genie code, or by hacking

the ROM. A value of 0001 would give you 1 second periods,

001E would give you 30 second periods, etc. Just remember

it uses hex values. And remember it will only work when

you select 10 minute periods (the default time).

Here's a couple Game Genie codes:

007860:01A4 = YV6A-ACDA

7 minute periods. Only works when you leave the period

length at 10 minutes.

007860:003C = HV6A-AADA

1 minute periods. Only works when you leave the period

length at 10 minutes.

Here's some "extra" info (wboy, does "extra" info sound

familiar? lol).

If you look at the ROM address (with your hex editor)

where we found our value for the 10 minute periods, here

is what you'll see around it:

012C 0258 04B0 001E

These are all the values for the other period lengths.

012C = 5 minute periods.

0258 = 10 minute periods (this is the one we found).

04B0 = 20 minute periods.

001E = 30 second periods (this is for the controller cheat).

You can change those values to anything you want, and

if you selected that particular period length in the

option screen, your new "hacked" time would kick in.

Well, that concludes our ROM hacking 101 class. As I

said before, after you've done a few, reading an

assembly trace log gets easier. Just remember that

you don't need to know what everything in the trace.log

means, just the part you're interested in. To be

honest with you, there is still a lot of stuff in there

that I don't completely understand. Get to know the

basics and you'll find lots of useful stuff.

Tony.

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Even though I don't play NHL '94 on the Genesis, I just gotta say I'm impressed. Really interesting to get this kind of insight on how it's done, and what can be done! Really cool.

:D

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Open up your trace.log file (with MS Word or ?)...

Well I haven't had a chance to play with tracer yet but thought I might mention the existence of a few freeware file editors out there that may allow fore easier viewing of the log/text files in general.

The editors mentioned are useful as they allow for syntax highlighting... meaning you could even create your own syntax rules to highlight the opcode and registers in different colors making it easier to read.

I think all support bookmarking lines, allowing you to highlight potential data finds of interest, and most (if not all) also have simple hex editing features built in allowing you to have a rom open for simple hacking at the same time.

My favorite is PSPad - http://www.pspad.com/

Alternatives (in order of preference):

notepad++ - http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net/

Crimson Editor - http://www.crimsoneditor.com/

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  • 1 month later...
  • 2 weeks later...
Dear Tony H,

Holy crap.

Sincerely,

addisonbr

Holy crap indeed. I would watch out Tony, the goverment might kidnap you to break codes like that little kid in the bruce willis movie

1-1.jpg

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  • 3 weeks later...

Finally got the NHL Genesis Game Genie codes and the guide from above (all in one piece) up on my web site.

Here's my address:

http://www.angelfire.com/games2/codehut/

Tony H.

P.S.

There's a new version of Gens out now (Gens 9.5b) that combines an improved RAM searching feature with the memory tracer and assembly trace logger. Here's a link to it: http://www.homeactionreplay.org/info/

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  • 11 months later...
  • 4 months later...

Tony, if you come back...

I've been interested in getting the clock to run in "real time" and since it appears that many of your example traces are dealing with time, maybe you have some insight into why the clock seems to run at 2.5x normal speed? Thanks for any info regarding this!

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  • 1 month later...
Tony, if you come back...

I've been interested in getting the clock to run in "real time" and since it appears that many of your example traces are dealing with time, maybe you have some insight into why the clock seems to run at 2.5x normal speed? Thanks for any info regarding this!

I did a quick assembly trace of the clock and it doesn't look like there's any easy fix.

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  • 1 year later...
  • 1 month later...

I need to be able to find the trace of which logo is assigned to each spot. Would this work in a similiar way. I was bale totrace the clock in Coach K, but ohw can i read the graphics assembly, or is that a pipe(Crack Pipe?!:D) dream?

Edited by hurricane55
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  • 2 months later...
Hi Tony, how could I find overtime period length in NHL95 PC-version?

for PC games, you can use tony's techniques, but use Cheat Engine to do the memory tracing

http://www.cheatengine.org/

I've never used it, though... but I think it works in a similar way.

Edited by smozoma
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  • 2 weeks later...

this is quite the topic. I wish I understood it better. somebody should take on a comprehensive hacking section for the main site, so searching for threads is minimized. yeah, so, uh... wow.

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